


babydoll

by sunhyucks



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Angst with a Happy Ending, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Light Angst, M/M, Mutual Pining, in conclusion they are both fools
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-08
Updated: 2019-12-08
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:42:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21716302
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunhyucks/pseuds/sunhyucks
Summary: jaehyun had gotten himself into quite the predicament, and he was angry. or, at least he wished he was angry. in reality, he felt some weird emotion between angry and sad and confused and, for some odd reason, happy. but, alas, he couldn’t focus too much on his emotions as the root of his problem was centered around one extremely attractive, intelligent, and, as far as jaehyun knew, straight johnny seo.or, in which johnny, while teasing a tipsy and clingy jaehyun, had started calling him babydoll, and, for some reason, fromthat point on he hadn’t stopped.
Relationships: Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Suh Youngho | Johnny
Comments: 7
Kudos: 141





	babydoll

**Author's Note:**

> hi everyone! this fic has been sitting collecting dust for what seems like forever so i’ve finally decided to just post it.
> 
> title from the song babydoll by dominic fike.
> 
> enjoy!

“g’morning, babydoll.” johnny said as jaehyun made his way into the common area of his dorm room, where johnny had been filling up the kettle with water for his usual morning tea. jaehyun greeted johnny back and did his best to ignore the pet name as he grabbed a breakfast bar and went back to his tiny room. 

johnny and jaehyun had been rooming together for the past year, and, although johnny was two years his senior, they had quickly become good friends, already having many mutual friends. they had many of the same interests, like gaming and music and poetry, and their friends were constantly teasing them on how they acted like an old married couple. normally, jaehyun would just laugh it off, but lately he had been wondering what it’d be like if they really were something more. 

he had always seen johnny to be attractive, but now, what yuta would call “shamelessly checking out” could hardly be described as just platonic. he wouldn’t even be in this mess if it wasn’t for that fateful friday night a week ago, when mark had aced his music theory exam and asked their whole friend group to go out to a club with him. everyone had agreed, and within an hour of being there, jaehyun was already reasonably tipsy. johnny, being the amazing man he was, decided to stay sober, seeing as everyone else except him and doyoung were drinking. 

after jaehyun had taken another shot, the reckless part of him in his clingy, tipsy state decided to wrap his arms around johnny’s neck and cuddle into his side. when he almost tripped over johnny’s shoe johnny was quick to hold him up by his waist, laughing quietly at how silly this clingy drunk jaehyun was. 

“you having a hard time there, babydoll?”

it was teasing, of course it was, but jaehyun still felt a weird, not totally uncomfortable warmth spread throughout his chest. and, in his drunken state, all he could do was whine. 

twenty minutes later, when johnny was still holding him up and jaehyun was still being a clingy mess, jaehyun decided he wanted to go back to the dorms. after voicing this to johnny (the best he could, at least) johnny began to help jaehyun out of the club.

“are you getting sleepy, babydoll?”

once again, there was the warm feeling in his chest.

and, the next morning, when jaehyun woke up with a moderate hangover, johnny was there with a cup of green tea.

“did you sleep well, babydoll?”

suddenly, memories from the night before had flooded his brain. jaehyun squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block out the sudden urge to disintegrate into the earth. he let out a strained, “yeah” before grabbing the tea and downing it in one go, the drink burning his throat.

this brought jaehyun back to the present, sitting on his bed with his breakfast bar. it took both his hands to count how many times johnny had called him “babydoll” since the first night it happened, and jaehyun felt as if he was being thrown into the sun every time the pet name came out of johnny’s mouth.

his and johnny’s mutual friends weren’t any help either. they were constantly teasing jaehyun, and he couldn’t imagine what they’d say if he told them that he was contemplating whether or not he had _feelings_ for johnny. 

jaehyun sighed and quickly ate his breakfast bar, then got dressed in some sweats and a simple black turtleneck and walked back out to the common area. johnny had already gone to his morning class, but not before leaving a small bag of hot cheetos on the coffee table they had in front of the tv. it had a note taped to it.

it was a cute little pink post-it note, and it had a cute little message on it in johnny’s cute handwriting.

_“decided to give you the last bag, cherish it or else >:(“ _

jaehyun couldn’t help but blush at the fact that johnny had given him the last bag, though he knew he was being stupid.

_“it’s johnny,”_ the rational part of his brain said, _“of course he gave you the last bag.”_

he sighed again before grabbing the bag and throwing on his coat, (it was only the first week of march, after all) heading out the door to go to his 9AM. 

  
  
  


jaehyun did have _one_ friend he wasn’t afraid of spilling all of his emotional baggage to, he thought as he made his way into the dining hall, spotting taeyong. 

taeyong was his only friend that he didn’t share with johnny, and he was extremely kind, to a fault. he didn’t mind when jaehyun talked about johnny, and he gave wonderful advice. 

“hey, jaehyun!” taeyong exclaimed when jaehyun settles next to him at their usual table, “how are things with you and johnny?”

“he’s still calling me babydoll, _and_ he left me the last bag of hot cheetos, which i know doesn’t mean much, but now that i’ve realized that i have a crush everything he does makes the dumb part of my brain go wild,” he said in one breath.

“maybe you have a chance jaehyun, if he calls you babydoll all the time then surely he can’t just be teasing you.” taeyong replied, his eyes looking sympathetic.

“but he’s straight, taeyong! he’s never shown any interest towards men before.” they had been over this multiple times, but taeyong just wouldn’t give it up.

“well, has he shown any interest in women?”

jaehyun sighed, “well no, but let’s say he _was_ into dudes. he’d probably never like someone like _me_.”

“you don’t know that, jaehyun. it doesn’t hurt to try. maybe he’ll surprise you.”

at that moment yuta and ten came bursting through the dining hall doors, looking for jaehyun. he and taeyong exchanged goodbyes before jaehyun joined yuta and ten.

“hey, _babydoll_ ,” ten drawled.

jaehyun groaned.

  
  
  


“taeyongie.” jaehyun paused in the middle of his and taeyong’s walk to their shared class, “i’m not even out to johnny. now there’s _no way_ he could like me!”

taeyong backed up so he was next to jaehyun, “jaehyun, you know that’s not how that works. you’ve had crushes on straight guys before! and what do you mean you’re not out to johnny, aren’t you out to everyone?”

“well, yeah, but i don’t think he knows,” jaehyun paused for a second, wringing his hands together, “just a few days ago johnny asked me if i had a crush on any girls, to which i obviously said no.”

“well, jaehyun.. are you planning on telling him you like guys?”

jaehyun thought for a second.

“fuck it, i’ll do it after class. there’s nothing to lose, anyway.”

taeyong smiled, “well, good luck then.”

  
  
  


“johnny, i’m gay.”

johnny froze, accidentally driving princess peach off of rainbow road. he promptly paused the game and turned to face jaehyun on the couch.

“i- uhm- you’re.. gay?”

jaehyun could feel his heartbeat thumping in his chest, “yes, i’m gay. please tell me that doesn’t change our friendship, johnny.” jaehyun’s eyes welled up with tears when he saw johnny struggle to find words. he didn’t think it’d be this nerve-wracking.

johnny cleared his throat before placing his hand on jaehyun’s knee, “jaehyun, babydoll, i promise you this doesn’t change a thing. you’re still the same old jaehyunnie, it doesn’t matter to me what gender you’re attracted to. hell, most of our friends like guys!”

jaehyun nodded, a few tears slipping down his cheeks. god, johnny was just so _nice_.

“babydoll, don’t cry.” johnny smiled sadly, opening his arms to envelop jaehyun in a hug.

jaehyun half-sobbed, half-laughed into johnny’s shoulder, his shirt muffling his voice, “it’s your fault, johnny seo!”

johnny just laughed in response, and jaehyun could feel himself falling harder.

  
  
  


apart from the mess with johnny, jaehyun’s classes had also been stressing him out, and it was starting to take a toll on his health. when he woke up one monday morning feeling absolutely drained despite getting a good amount of sleep, johnny demanded that he skip classes and rest. while jaehyun protested, he knew he didn’t have a choice when johnny came in his room with his favorite tea and fuzzy blanket. he proceeded to wrap jaehyun up in the blanket tightly and stay with him until he finished his tea.

seeing as he had fallen asleep before johnny left, he didn’t hear the soft “sweet dreams, babydoll,” nor did he feel the brush of johnny’s lips across his temple afterward.

later that evening, when the sun was starting to set in the sky, johnny came home with bags of food from their favorite italian restaurant.

as soon as jaehyun heard johnny say, “jaehyunnie, i got you chicken parm soup!” he jumped from his place on the couch and bolted to johnny. jaehyun realized his mistake when a wave of nausea overtook him. 

johnny must have understood what had happened because jaehyun suddenly felt an arm wrap around his waist to support him.

“babydoll! are you okay? what happened? are you sick?”

jaehyun could only groan in response, his head dropping onto johnny’s shoulder.

“let’s get you back to the couch, ‘kay, babydoll? i’ll get you some gatorade and you can eat when you’re ready.”

jaehyun nodded as johnny set him back down on the couch. this had to be at least the 10th time in the past two weeks that he had wanted to kiss johnny for just being a decent fucking human being. he was just so _nice_ . jaehyun stared at the tv playing reruns for some stupid drama. who _wouldn’t_ fall for johnny seo?

  
  
  


everything came to a head that thursday when jaehyun came home from his part time job at a local pizza parlor to johnny and another boy.. making out?

the boy appeared to be around their age, and jaehyun quickly recognized him as jeonghan, a music major in johnny’s grade. his t-shirt had been thrown onto the ground in haste, his fingers tangled in the back of johnny’s hair.

jaehyun stood, shocked in the doorway for a moment, the two boys not yet realizing he had just entered. he felt confusion, then a pang of jealousy.

the two boys finally acknowledged jaehyun’s presence when jeonghan moved to take off johnny’s shirt. they looked at each other for a moment before jeonghan realized what was going on and quickly stepped back, grabbing his shirt off the ground.

jaehyun held eye contact with johnny until jeonghan had left in a hurry, the sound of the door shutting breaking their silence. 

johnny spoke first, and jaehyun did his best to push back the urge of staring at his kiss-swollen lips. “jaehyun, i’m sorry, i-“

jaehyun just shook his head, tears threatening to fall. johnny didn’t owe him anything. he walked straight past johnny into his room, despite johnny calling after him.

he grabbed a change of clothes and a toothbrush, put them in his bag, and texted taeyong to tell him he was coming over. not waiting for a response, jaehyun walked back out to the common area to find johnny still standing there, his eyes on jaehyun.

“are you leaving?”

jaehyun nodded, “i’m going to taeyong’s.”

johnny just nodded his head and opened his mouth as if he was about to say something, but then he closed it again. jaehyun could see his adam’s apple bob up and down, but he looked away quickly before leaving the dorm room and hightailing it to taeyong’s.

it was on the way to taeyong’s that he realized that he was absolutely whipped for johnny seo. 

  
  
  


it took jaehyun a little bit to get to taeyong’s place, since he lived in an apartment just off campus, but it gave him time to think. mostly about how much he wished he could hate johnny, but he knew that could never happen unless he did something absolutely horrible.

by the time he got to taeyong’s apartment, he was sweating despite the cold weather and felt worn out, both mentally and physically. as soon as he saw taeyong’s caring eyes on him he lost it and fell into his arms, breaking into sobs. taeyong shushed him gently and brought them to his couch, where he held jaehyun until he stopped crying. 

once jaehyun stopped crying, his eyes all puffy and red and his nose all runny, he was ready to tell taeyong what had happened. kun, taeyong’s sweet roommate, was there as well, and offered to make some tea, which jaehyun accepted graciously.

“are you okay, angel? what happened?” taeyong said, anxious eyes flitting around jaehyun’s face.

jaehyun grabbed a tissue from the table in front of the couch and blew his nose before cuddling up in the blanket taeyong had given him. then, he told him everything that happened.

  
  
  


“i didn’t think i’d ever say this, but i hate johnny seo,” taeyong said. it had taken a bit for jaehyun to explain to taeyong what had happened, since he didn’t want it to seem like johnny was the biggest douche in the entire world, (he was jaehyun’s crush, after all) but taeyong was still angry.

jaehyun sniffled, “i have no right to be this upset, i mean, he didn’t know when i was coming home-“

“-he knows when your shifts start and end, jaehyun!”

“-and he can kiss whoever he wants.”

taeyong couldn’t help but roll his eyes, “jaehyun, he’s been calling you babydoll of all things! he should know better. he could have at least given you a heads up. he probably knows you like him and he’s just doing this to hurt you, the tall bastard.”

“johnny would never intentionally hurt me, taeyongie,” jaehyun paused for a second, “could i just go to sleep? i’m really tired..”

taeyong sighed and nodded, leaning in to wrap his arms around jaehyun’s shoulders in a comforting hug, “of course, you big baby.”

when taeyong and kun had retired to their own rooms and jaehyun was left laying on the pull out couch in their living room, he couldn’t help but think back to what he had said to taeyong. 

_surely, johnny would never want to hurt me like that, right?_




johnny felt horrible. he hated to be dramatic, but it felt like someone had taken his heart out and smashed it into a billion pieces. and that wasn’t even the worst part. the worst part was that it probably didn’t even compare to how hurt jaehyun was feeling.

he was pacing the room after jaehyun left, his hands gripping his hair, regretting how he had probably made poor, lovely jaehyun feel. 

he thought back to when he had first seen jeonghan that night, at a club. johnny was hurting, so he decided it would be a good idea to get drunk and get his mind off of jaehyun. he saw jeonghan dancing under the harsh lights of the dance floor, and thought that the way he lazily moved his hips kind of resembled the way that jaehyun would. although jaehyun danced way better, drunk johnny wasn’t about to be too picky.

jeonghan had found out about jaehyun fairly quickly in their quick makeout session in the dingy bathrooms of the club, after johnny had embarrassingly whimpered his name in between some of their kisses. jeonghan had backed up after that.

“jaehyun? jung jaehyun, right? music and engineering major?”

johnny could only nod, his head pounding.

“you think he likes you back?” jeonghan replied.

“nuh-uh, ‘m too yucky. jaehyunnie deserves better.” johnny half mumbled, half whined.

jeonghan laughed, amusement clear in his voice. “i guess so, even though he looks at you as if you hung the stars in the sky when i see you two in the dining hall.”

“nooo,” was all johnny had said (whined) before diving back in to kiss jeonghan again.

johnny groaned thinking about the interaction, and what it had led to. as much as he wanted to find jaehyun, give him the biggest hug that he’s ever received in his entire life, then kiss all his worries away, he knew that it’d be better to let jaehyun come back to him first. 

and so he waited.




the next morning jaehyun woke up feeling worse than he thought he’d ever felt before.

taeyong was making pancakes, kun reading a book and drinking some tea. when jaehyun cleared his throat to get their attention, taeyong immediately whipped around. 

“jaehyun! how are you feeling, angel?”

jaehyun rubbed his hands over his face, groaning, “i don’t know what to dooooo, taeyong.”

taeyong crossed the room to the couch where jaehyun was. “i think you should maybe skip classes for today. and maybe tell your friends-“

“taeyong, i don't thi-“

“jaehyun!” taeyong stopped him from talking, “they’ll understand. you need someone besides kun and i to confide in. as much as they may tease you, they care about you.”

jaehyun sighed. it was hard to win an argument with taeyong when he had a good point.

“i don’t want to, taeyong.”

taeyong just nodded, handing jaehyun a plate with a few pancakes on it.

while jaehyun was inhaling the pancakes, taeyong was putting on his coat to head to his classes. he turned to jaehyun before leaving.

“just promise me you’ll think about it, ‘kay?”

  
  
  


a few hours later, when both kun and taeyong were in their classes, jaehyun got the courage to call yuta and ten to tell them to meet at their usual table at the chinese place by their dorms. 

when it was time to meet, jaehyun walked into the restaurant and spotted his friends, sighing to himself and going to sit in the seat opposite them.

“thanks for meeting me you guys, i really appreciate it”

“what’s the matter, jaehyun? you’ve looked stressed out these past couple of weeks.” ten said, sharing a worried look with yuta.

“i just-“ he paused. he didn’t know why it was so hard to tell his friends. he took a deep breath, before trying again, “i kinda really, really like johnny and i’ve been so stressed out because he’s been calling me _babydoll_ of all things and i know he doesn’t like me and i don’t know what to do and yesterday i caught him making out with a boy in his grade so i’m staying at a frien-“

“wait _right there_ , johnny did _what_?” yuta interrupted him, looking furious, “tell us everything, jaehyun.”

  
  
  


by the time that jaehyun was done explaining everything that had happened and everything he had been feeling, he was crying once again, and ten had gone to his side of the table to comfort him.

“what johnny did is a real dick move jaehyun, i can’t believe he did that to you.”

jaehyun sniffled, “what do you mean? he can do whatever he wants with whomever he wants, i don’t care. i’m not his boyfriend.”

ten sighed and took jaehyun’s hand. “you don’t get it jaehyun.”

“what could i possibly not get?”

ten and yuta shared a look that jaehyun couldn’t quite place.

“i- maybe you should try to talk to him?” yuta said, his voice getting higher at the end. 

jaehyun huffed, taking a huge bite out of his pepperoni pizza, his voice muffled, “i don’t wanna talk to him right now. i’ll just wait til he comes to me.”

ten rolled his eyes, “jaehyun, you know that johnny’s probably waiting for _you_ to go to _him_. we don’t want to rush you, but you can’t wait for forever.”

“who knows, maybe you have a chance, jaehyunnie!” yuta added at the end.

jaehyun just groaned.




it was saturday, which meant that johnny had spent two agonizing days without jaehyun. he didn’t realize how lonely and cold their dorm felt without jaehyun, but he supposed he deserved it after what he had done.

despite what his drunk self may think, he knew there was a possibility that jaehyun liked him back. he wasn’t oblivious to how jaehyun acted whenever he called him babydoll, he knew that the way jaehyun looked at him couldn’t be considered completely platonic. he knew that if he confessed he had been in love with jaehyun for months, his feelings would maybe be somewhat reciprocated. 

but, he was a coward. he wasn’t worthy of being with sweet, kind, beautiful jaehyun, despite what their friends may say.

and so, he was sitting there on his couch on a lonely saturday night, watching toy story by himself. saturday night was movie night, where he and jaehyun would watch animated films and eat popcorn and sometimes cuddle up together with all the blankets they could find. jaehyun had never missed movie night, and johnny thought for a second that maybe he would come home.

he didn’t end up coming home that night and johnny might or might not have cried himself to sleep.

  
  
  


by the fourth night of jaehyun being gone johnny felt as if he was going crazy, and all of his friends were scared for his wellbeing.

“mark, i’m fine! i swear. it’s fine.”

“you cried while listening to gary come home, man. that’s not good. that’s never good.”

johnny huffed and angrily turned on the kettle to boil some water. “so? you don’t need to check up on me, i deserve this. i’ve practically been leading jaehyun on.”

“johnn-“

“i am a horrible person, mark.”

“JOHNNY,” mark yelled, stopping johnny from continuing his self deprecating rants. “johnny, you’re not a horrible person, and even though what you did might be douchey, you still need to be checked up on. we’re all worried about you.”

johnny sighed and mark wrapped his arms around him, johnny slumping into him.

“mark, what am i supposed to do? it feels like it’s been forever since i’ve seen him. i think i _love_ him, mark, but i know he’ll never forgive me.” johnny cried and leaned his head back to look at the ceiling, blinking away his tears.

“johnny, all you can do is wait for him. i doubt jaehyun could ever hate you, he probably feels the same. if it’s meant to be it’ll be.”

johnny laughed sadly, slapping mark on the shoulder. “since when did you get so wise?”

“i’m not a baby, johnny!”




jaehyun missed johnny.

as hard as it was for him to admit, it was the truth. it had only been six days, less than a week since he had seen him, but it felt like something was missing without hearing johnny’s laugh, without drinking the tea that only he could manage to get right.

“-hyun.. jaehyun?”

he whipped his head around at the sound of his name being called. ah, right, he was supposed to be studying with ten in the library.

“ten, i think i’m ready to talk to johnny.” jaehyun blurted out, before clapping a hand over his mouth. he thought that ten would be surprised, but he just smiled.

“about time. when are you planning on talking with him?”

jaehyun took a deep breath. he had thought about when the perfect time would be, but he couldn’t seem to find a perfect time. 

“tonight. he usually goes to the gym on wednesdays. i’ll wait for him to come home.”

ten’s smile turned into a smirk, “well, then, i wish you good luck. i’m sure you’ll have a nice talk. and maybe if you’re extra lucky, more than just _a talk_.”

jaehyun resisted the urge to bang his head against the table. he didn’t want to get the librarian angry.

  
  
  


taeyong’s reaction was a bit different from ten’s. he had just gotten back from his teaching job at the local dance studio when jaehyun blurted it out.

“i’m gonna talk with johnny tonight.”

taeyong had just paused for a second before pulling jaehyun into a hug. 

“i hope it goes well, jaehyun!” he had a wide smile on his face, “but if johnny pulls anything funny, and i mean _anything_ , you come back here straight away, you hear?”

jaehyun rolled his eyes, “yes, mom, i swear you’d be the first person i’d go to.”

taeyong patted his shoulder, “well, what are you waiting for? go get your man!”

jaehyun took a deep breath, then nodded. he was most ready he’d ever been.




when jaehyun finally came home, johnny was caught off guard.

he had just come back from the gym, and seeing jaehyun, quietly sleeping on the couch, was the last thing he expected to see. he only narrowly avoided breaking his foot via accidentally dropping his gym bag in shock. not taking his eyes off jaehyun, johnny carefully set his gym bag on the floor and tiptoed to the couch as not to wake his sleeping beauty.

his outstretched arms were already halfway to jaehyun when he realized that it might not be the best idea to pick him up and take him to his bed. would that not be crossing a line? would jaehyun be even more furious than johnny was sure he already was? 

in the end, he found the nearest blanket and gently placed it over him, brushing the hair out of jaehyun’s face afterwards. he couldn’t help but admire him after being deprived of his beauty for so long (less than a week). after a few more minutes of willing himself not to wake him up and confess his love, he settled for lightly kissing his forehead and retreating back to his room.

apologies and confessions could wait till the morning.




it was thursday morning. the birds were chirping, the sun was shining through the blinds. _shit_ , it was _thursday morning_. jaehyun shot up, widening his eyes. 

he must’ve fallen asleep. he craned his neck to see johnny fiddling with the kettle and whistling a tune. it was such a normal, familiar sight, jaehyun would have never suspected it would make his whole heart flutter. unsure of what to do, he willed his heart to calm down and stood up as quietly as he could so he wouldn’t alert johnny. 

it seemed his efforts to stay quiet were in vain, as johnny turned around with a cup of tea in hand, his whistling abruptly stopping upon seeing jaehyun awake.

they must’ve stood there for a good minute just staring at each other. eventually, johnny spoke.

“i-uhm, good morning bab- i mean, jaehyun. we should talk?” he raised his cup to gesture to jaehyun, “maybe over a cup of tea?”

jaehyun nodded, clearing his throat, “i guess we can’t wait forever.”

  
  
  


“i’m sorry.” they both said as soon as they sat down on the couch with their tea. johnny shook his head quickly, “jaehyun! why are you sorry? _i’m_ the one who should be sorry!”

jaehyun huffed. “i just left after i saw you- you know, i should’ve let you explain yourself!”

“there was nothing to explain! i shouldn’t have put you in that situation! especially considering..” johnny trailed off, not sure whether it would be appropriate to finish what he was saying.

“considering what, johnny?” 

they stared at each other, before johnny finally broke.

“i- uhm- jaehyun, do you have feelings for me?” jaehyun just stared. johnny waved his hands around, trying to find his words. “because, uhm, i might have feelings for you, too. like, a lot of feelings. for you. obviously.” 

jaehyun opened his mouth, but no words came out.

“what? do you really- if you really then why did i see you-“ he took a deep breath, “how long?”

johnny sighed. “months. i’m sorry. i really am. i never should have done anything with jeonghan when i had feelings for you.” when jaehyun didn’t reply, he carried on, “i- i don’t deserve you, jaehyun. you’re too kind, too sweet, too beautiful for me. i’m really sorry, jaehyun. i know sorry doesn’t do much, but it’s all i’ve got.”

johnny was visibly deflating, his usually calm and confident exterior vanishing. it broke jaehyun’s heart. as much as he wanted to hold him, he stopped himself.

“johnny, these past few days have been really shitty, but i can forgive you.” he smiled sadly, “and i do maybe have feelings for you. a lot of feelings.”

johnny nodded before closing his eyes and leaning back against the couch. he felt arms wrap around him and pull him into a warm, firm chest. he couldn’t help but bury himself as deep as he could, letting out a few of the tears he had been holding in. 

jaehyun kissed him on top of the head. “we’ll be okay, john. you’re okay.”

  
  
  


  * 3 months later•



jaehyun was happy. really happy. he was walking home from work️, thinking about just how happy he was. he found himself doing that a lot lately. thinking about how the weather was getting warmer, his grades were up, summer was practically right around the corner, he was even going to chicago over the summer to meet his boyfriend’s family. 

his _boyfriend_. 

johnny was the perfect boyfriend. for him, at least. “you guys are soulmates.” his friends would tell him. _soulmates_ . johnny and jaehyun, soulmates! he knew it had only been two months, but jaehyun was quite sure that his friends were right, he was quite sure that he _Loved_ johnny. uppercase L and all. 

looking back, jaehyun never thought that he even had a chance with johnny. now, he was walking home, ready to collapse into johnny’s waiting arms.

  
  
  


“johnny i’m ho-“

he wasn’t even able to finish his sentence before johnny wrapped him in his arms and spun him around, setting him down and giving him a big fat kiss on the lips.

“hey, babydoll.”

oh yeah, johnny hadn’t stopped with that godforsaken pet name. 

“hi, john, what was that for?”

“it’s our two month anniversary!” johnny exclaimed before he led jaehyun into their little living space. jaehyun felt his eyes well up with hot tears. “johnny!” he flung his arms around his neck, burrowing his head into johnny’s strong chest.

johnny had made them food, laid out rose petals, _and_ had put out candles. god, he really loved johnny. jaehyun could even hear the soft notes of his favorite chet baker songs, completing the romantic mood.

“you really did all of this, johnny? for me?” jaehyun could hardly believe he got so lucky.

johnny smiled, taking his boyfriend’s hand and leading him to the couch. “just boyfriend duties, sir.” once they had sat down on the couch, facing each other, johnny took his other hand as well and looked into jaehyun’s eyes. “honestly though, i hope this isn’t too much. i know we’ve only been together a few months but i feel like i’ve known you forever, jae. i’m just trying my best to express how much i- uhm- i love you.”

jaehyun looked at johnny, eyes wide open. they stared at each other for a second, neither of them comprehending what had just come out of johnny’s mouth. just when it seemed like johnny was going to start apologizing, jaehyun snapped out of the trance he was in and leaned into johnny, burying his face into his shoulder. 

“i wuvhhsjrtoo”

johnny breathed out a laugh, hugging jaehyun back. “i thought i screwed up for a second there, jae, i wasn’t even thinking-“

“john, it’s okay,” jaehyun stopped him, “i said it back didn’t i?”

“say it again.”

“.. what?”

johnny grinned, his eyes scrunching up in the way jaehyun had always adored. “say you love me again, babydoll.”

jaehyun groaned.

  
  
  


later, after they had eaten and said they loved each other a million more times, johnny had a revelation while they were cuddled in bed, as usual.

“jae, babe?”

a grumble came from deep in the sheets, “.. yes?”

“you, uhm, you’ve always been okay with me calling you babydoll, right?”

jaehyun had flashbacks to the first times johnny had used the nickname, getting flushed from even thinking about it. 

“of course, i think i’ve always had a soft spot for it… even before we were dating.”

“even before, huh?”

jaehyun stopped for a moment, realizing what he could have just gotten himself into. johnny knew what effect that nickname had on him.

“yeah..”

johnny just smiled and squished closer to jaehyun, too drunk on being tired to think a lot about what he said. he could ask (and tease) him more about it later.

“okay, goodnight, babydoll. love you.”

jaehyun had never felt more in love than in that moment.

“love you too, john.”

all thanks to that stupid babydoll nickname.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> hello again if you’ve made it this far! thank you for reading and if you enjoyed comments and kudos are appreciated <3


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